Ben Franklin's World

How did the postal system work in Early America? How did people send mail across the North American colonies and the British Empire? Joseph Adelman, an Assistant Professor of History at Framingham State University and author of Revolutionary Networks: The Business and Politics of Printing, 1763-1789, joins us to further explore how the early American postal system worked and how people and mail traveled around early North America and the Atlantic World. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/239 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute The Ben Franklin's World Shop Complementary Episodes Episode 028: Janice Fontanella, Building the Erie Canal Episode 113: Brian Murphy, Building the Empire State Episode 156: The Power of the Press in the American Revolution Episode 200: Everyday Life in Early America Episode 219: Adrian Covert, Taverns in Early America Listen! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Helpful Links Join the Ben Franklin's World Facebook Group Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter *Books purchased through the links on this post will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Benedict Arnold is an intriguing figure. He was both a military hero who greatly impacted and furthered the American War for Independence with his bravery on the battlefield and someone who did something unthinkable: he betrayed his country. Stephen Brumwell, an award-winning historian and the author of Turncoat: Benedict Arnold and the Crisis of American Liberty, joins us to explore the life and deeds of Benedict Arnold and Arnold’s stunning metamorphosis from hero to traitor. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/238 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute The Ben Franklin's World Shop Complementary Episodes Episode 071: Bruce Venter, Saratoga and Hubbardton, 1777 Episode 158: The Revolutionaries’ Army Episode 194: Longfellow House Washington’s Headquarters, NHS Episode 208: Nathaniel Philbrick, Turning Points of the American Revolution Episode 225: Elaine Forman Crane, The Poison Plot Episode 229: Patrick Griffin, The Townshend Moment Listen! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Helpful Links Join the Ben Franklin's World Facebook Group Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter *Books purchased through the links on this post will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mother’s Day became a national holiday on May 9, 1914 to honor all of the work mothers do to raise children. But what precisely is the work that mothers do to raise children? Has the nature of mothers, motherhood, and the work mothers do changed over time? Nora Doyle, an Assistant Professor of History at Salem College in North Carolina, has combed through the historical record to find answers to these questions. Specifically, she’s sought to better understand the lived and imagined experiences of mothers and motherhood between the 1750s and 1850s. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/237 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute The Ben Franklin's World Shop Maternal Bodies: Redefining Motherhood in Early America Complementary Episodes Episode 027: Lisa Wilson, A History of Stepfamilies in Early America Episode 120: Marcia Zug, A History of Mail Order Brides in Early America Episode 150: Woody Holton, Abigail Adams: Revolutionary Speculator Episode 205: Jeanne Abrams, First Ladies of the Republic Listen! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Helpful Links Join the Ben Franklin's World Facebook Group Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter *Books purchased through the links on this post will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who do we count as family? If a relative was born in a foreign place and one of their parents was of a different race? Would they count as family? Eighteenth-century Britons asked themselves these questions. As we might suspect, their answers varied by time and whether they lived in Great Britain, North America, or the Caribbean. Daniel Livesay, an Associate Professor of History at Claremont McKenna College in California, helps us explore the evolution of British ideas about race with details from his book Children of Uncertain Fortune: Mixed-Race Jamaicans in Britain and the Atlantic Family, 1733-1833. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/236 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute University of North Carolina Press (Save 40 percent with code 01BFW) Complementary Episodes Episode 008: Greg O'Malley, Final Passages: The Intercolonial Slave Trade of British America Episode 052: Ronald Johnson, Early United States-Haitian Diplomacy Episode 099: Mark Hanna, Pirates & Pirate Nests in the British Atlantic World Episode 173: Marisa Fuentes, Colonial Port Cities and Slavery Episode 206: Katharine Gerbner, Christian Slavery SUBSCRIBE! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Helpful Links Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter *Books purchased through the links on this post will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does early America look like if we view it through Native American eyes? Jenny Hale Pulsipher, an Associate Professor of History at Brigham Young University and author of Swindler Sachem, is a scholar who enjoys investigating the many answers to this question. And today, she introduces us to a Nipmuc Indian named John Wompas and how he experienced a critical time in early American history, the period between the 1650s and 1680s. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/235 Meet Ups & Talks Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute KiwiCo (Get your first crate FREE!) Complementary Episodes Episode 170: Wendy Warren, Slavery in Early New England Episode 192: Lisa Brooks, A New History of King Philip’s War Episode 198: Andrew Lipman, The Saltwater Frontier: Native Americans and Colonists on the Northeast Coast Episode 199: Coll Thrush, Indigenous London: Native Travelers at the Heart of the Empire Episode 220: Margaret Newell, New England Indians, Colonists, and the Origins of Slavery SUBSCRIBE! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Helpful Links Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter *Books purchased through the links on this post will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If we want to understand everyday life in early America we need to understand the everyday life of early American farms and farmers. Roughly three-quarters of Americans in British North America and the early United States considered themselves to be farmers. So how did early Americans establish farms and what were the rhythms of their daily lives? Richard Bushman, the Gouverneur Morris Professor Emeritus of History at Columbia University, joins us to investigate farms and farm life in early America with details from his book, The American Farmer in the Eighteenth Century: A Social and Cultural History. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/234 Meet Ups & Talks Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Ben Franklin’s World T-shirts Complementary Episodes Episode 087: Sean Condon, Shays’ Rebellion Episode 115: Andrew Torget, The Early American History of Texas Episode 129: J.L. Bell, The Road to Concord Episode 130: Paul Revere’s Ride Through History Episode 135: Julie Holcomb, Moral Commerce: The Transatlantic Boycott of the Slave Labor Economy SUBSCRIBE! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Helpful Links Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter *Books purchased through the links on this post will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When we think about colonial American history we think about the colonies of the English, the Dutch, the French, and the Spanish. Rarely do we think about the colonies of the Russians. And yet Russia had colonies in North America. Gwenn Miller, an Associate Professor of History at the College of the Holy Cross, joins us to investigate a history of Russia’s colonies in North America with details from her book Kodiak Kreol: Communities of Empire in Early Russian America. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/233 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Ben Franklin's World T-Shirts Meet Ups & Talks Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library Complementary Episodes Episode 021: Eugene Tesdhal, Smuggling in Colonial America & Living History Episode 163: The American Revolution in North America Episode 184: David Silverman, Thundersticks: Firearms and the Violent Transformation of Native America Episode 223: Susan Sleeper-Smith, A Native American History of the Ohio River Valley SUBSCRIBE! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Helpful Links Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter *Books purchased through the links on this post will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before the English settled in Jamestown, Virginia in 1607 or the Dutch settled near Albany, New York in 1615, a group of French-speaking, Catholic settlers established a settlement in Nova Scotia in 1605. By 1755, nearly 15,000 Acadians lived in Acadia. Christopher Hodson, an Associate Professor of history at Brigham Young University and the author of The Acadian Diaspora, joins us to investigate the lives of these early North American colonists and how the British government came to displace them through a forced migration in 1755. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/232 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute KiwiCo (Get your first crate FREE!) Meet Ups & Talks Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library Complementary Episodes Episode 064: Brett Rushforth, Native American Slavery in New France Episode 085: Bonnie Huskins, American Loyalists in Canada Episode 108: Ann Little, The Many Captivities of Esther Wheelwright Episode 167: The Early History of New Orleans Episode 189: Sam White, The Little Ice Age SUBSCRIBE! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Helpful Links Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter *Books purchased through the links on this post will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Historians use archives to create the histories we love to read, watch, and listen to. So we’re going into one archive to investigate how historians use them and to discover more about the religious lives of the Adams Family. Sara Georgini, Series Editor of The Papers of John Adams, invites us to join her inside the Massachusetts Historical Society so we can take a closer look at the historical details provided by the Adams Papers and the role these manuscripts played in helping her write her book, Household Gods: The Religious Lives of the Adams Family. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/231 Meet Ups Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Books (Use promo code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent) Complementary Episodes Episode 007: Sara Georgini, John Adams & The Adams Papers Editorial Project Episode 123: Revolutionary Allegiances Episode 127: Caroline Winterer, American Enlightenments Episode 150: Woody Holton, Abigail Adams: Revolutionary Speculator Episode 193: Partisans: The Friendship and Rivalry of John Adams & Thomas Jefferson Episode 214: Christopher Grasso, Skepticism and American Faith SUBSCRIBE! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Helpful Links Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Ben Franklin’s WorldTwitter: @BFWorldPodcast Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Samuel Gray, James Caldwell, Samuel Maverick, Patrick Carr, and Crispus Attucks. These are the five men who died as a result of the shootings on Boston’s King Street on the night of March 5, 1770. Of these five victims, evidence points to Crispus Attucks falling first, and of all the victims, Crispus Attucks is the name we can recall. Why is that? To help us answer this question and to conclude our 3-episode series on the Boston Massacre, we’re joined by Mitch Kachun, a Professor of History at Western Michigan University and the author of First Martyr of Liberty: Crispus Attucks in American Memory. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/230 Meet Ups Albany, New York: April 25 at the New York State Cultural Education Center. Meet up at pre-talk reception. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 29, 6pm at Zaffiro’s Pizza Milwaukee, Wisconsin: April 30, 6pm free public talk at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Golda Meir Library Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Books (Use Promo Code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent on any title) Complementary Episodes Episode 157: The Revolution’s African American Soldiers Episode 212: Researching Biography Episode 228: Eric Hinderaker, The Boston Massacre Episode 229: Patrick Griffin, The Townshend Moment SUBSCRIBE! Apple Podcasts Spotify Google Podcasts Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Helpful Links Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Ben Franklin’s WorldTwitter: @BFWorldPodcast Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Within days of the Boston Massacre, Bostonians politicized the event. They circulated a pamphlet about “the Horrid Massacre” and published images portraying soldiers firing into a well-assembled and peaceful crowd. But why did the Boston Massacre happen? Why did the British government feel it had little choice but to station as many 2,000 soldiers in Boston during peacetime? And what was going on within the larger British Empire that drove colonists to the point where they provoked armed soldiers to fire upon them? Patrick Griffin, the Madden-Hennebry Family Professor of History at the University of Notre Dame and author of The Townshend Moment: The Making of Empire and Revolution in the Eighteenth Century, joins us to answer these questions as we continue our 3-episode investigation of the Boston Massacre. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/229 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Omohundro Institute Books (Use Promo Code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent) Complementary Episodes Bonus Episode: The Boston Stamp Act Riots of 1765 Episode 106: The World of John Singleton Copley Episode 112: The Tea Crisis of 1773 Episode 161: Smuggling and the American Revolution Episode 186: Max Edelson, The New Map of the British Empire Episode 228: Eric Hinderaker, The Boston Massacre Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the evening of March 5, 1770, a crowd gathered in Boston’s King Street and confronted a a sentry and his fellow soldiers in front of the custom house. The confrontation led the soldiers to fire their muskets into the crowd, five civilians died. What happened on the night of March 5, 1770 that led the crowd to gather and the soldiers to discharge their weapons? Eric Hinderaker, a distinguished professor of history at the University of Utah and the author of Boston’s Massacre, assists our quest to discover more about the Boston Massacre. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/228 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Omohundro Institute Books (Use Promo Code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent) Complementary Episodes Bonus Episode: J.L. Bell, The Stamp Act of 1765 Episode 106: Jane Kamensky, The World of John Singleton Copley Episode 112: Mary Beth Norton, The Tea Crisis of 1773 Episode 129: J.L. Bell, The Road to Concord, 1775 Episode 130: Paul Revere’s Ride Through History Episode 161: Smuggling and the American Revolution Episode 186: Max Edelson, The New Map of the British Empire Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the 21st century, we are all creators and users of content. We take original photos with our smartphones, generate blog posts, digital videos, and podcasts. Some of us write books and articles. And nearly everyone contributes content to social media. Given all of the information and content we generate and use, it’s really important for us to understand the principles of copyright and fair use, principles that have an early American past. Kyle Courtney, a lawyer, librarian, and Copyright Advisor for Harvard University, will serve as our guide through the early American origins of copyright and fair use. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/227 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute William and Mary Quarterly OI Reader App with bonus content from episode Nora Slonimsky, “The Public Figure Exception(s): Finding Fair Use in the Vastness of Early American IP” Complementary Episodes Episode 062: Carol Berkin, The Bill of Rights Episode 107: Mary Sarah Bilder, Madison’s Hand Episode 143: Michael Klarman, The Making of the United States Constitution Episode 179: George Van Cleve, Governance During the Critical Period Episode 207: Nick Bunker, Young Benjamin Franklin Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do we mean by “the state?” How is a “state” produced? Is “the state” something everyone can participate in producing? Ryan Quintana, an Associate Professor of History at Wellesley College and the author of Making a Slave State: Political Development in Early South Carolina, joins us to answer these questions with a look at the creation and development of the State of South Carolina. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/226 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute William and Mary Quarterly OI Reader app Complementary Episodes Episode 083: Jared Hardesty, Unfreedom: Slavery in Colonial Boston Episode 126: Rebecca Brannon, The Reintegration of American Loyalists Episode 157: Judith Van Buskirk, The Revolution’s African American Soldiers Episode 186: Max Edelson, The New Map of the British Empire Episode 190: Jennie Goloboy, Origins of the American Middle Class Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1738, a cooper named Benedict Arnold petitioned the Rhode Island General Assembly for a divorce from his wife Mary Ward Arnold. Benedict claimed that Mary had taken a lover and together they had attempted to murder him with poison. How did this story of love, divorce, and attempted murder unfold? What does it reveal about the larger world of colonial America and the experiences of colonial American men and women? Elaine Forman Crane, a Distinguished Professor of History at Fordham University, takes us through the Arnolds’ story with details from her book, The Poison Plot: A Tale of Adultery and Murder in Colonial Newport. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/225 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute William and Mary Quarterly OI Reader app Complementary Episodes Episode 110: Joshua Taylor, How Genealogists Research Episode 114: Karin Wulf, The History of Genealogy Episode 118: Christy Clark-Pujara, The Business of Slavery in Rhode Island Episode 208: Nathaniel Philbrick, Turning Points of the American Revolution Episode 209: Considering Biography Episode 212: Researching Biography Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Atlantic World has brought many disparate peoples together, which has caused a lot of ideas and cultures to mix. How did the Atlantic World bring so many different peoples and cultures together? How did this large intermixing of people and cultures impact the development of colonial America? Kevin Dawson, an Associate Professor of History at the University of California-Merced and author of Undercurrents of Power: Aquatic Culture in the African Diaspora, joins us to explore answers to these questions with an investigation of the African Diaspora and African and African American aquatic culture. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/048 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Institute for Thomas Paine Studies Follow the Institute for Thomas Paine Studies on Twitter (@TheITPS) Complementary Episodes Episode 104: Andrew Lipman, The Saltwater Frontier: Europeans & Native Americans on the Northeastern Coast Bonus: Lonnie Bunch, History & Historians in the Public Episode 166: Freedom and the American Revolution Episode 174: Thomas Apel, Yellow Fever in the Early American Republic Episode 200: Everyday Life in Early America Episode 206: Katharine Gerbner, Christian Slavery Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Ohio River Valley proved to be a rich agrarian region. Many different Native American peoples prospered from its land both in terms of the the land’s ability to produce a wide variety of crops and its support of a wide variety of small fur-bearing animals for the fur trade. Susan Sleeper-Smith, a Professor of History at Michigan State University and author of Indigenous Prosperity and American Conquest: Indian Women and the Ohio River Valley, 1690-1792, helps us explore this unique region and the important roles it played in the early American past. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/223 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Institute for Thomas Paine Studies Follow the Institute for Thomas Paine Studies on Twitter (@TheITPS) Complementary Episodes Episode 029: Colin Calloway, The Native American Defeat of the First American Army Episode 051: Catherine Cangany, Frontier Seaport: A History of Early Detroit Episode 064: Brett Rushforth, Native American Slavery in New France Episode 088: Michael McDonnell, The History of History Writing Episode 102: William Nester, George Rogers Clark & the Fight for the Illinois Country Episode 162: Dunmore’s New World Episode 184: David Silverman, Thundersticks: Firearms and the Violent Transformation of Native America Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever wondered how the capital of the United States came to be situated at Washington D.C.? The banks of the Potomac River represent an odd place to build a national city, a place that would not only serve as the seat of government for the nation, but also as an economic, cultural, and intellectual hub. Still in 1790, the United States Congress passed the Residence Act and mandated that it would establish a new, permanent capital along the banks of the Potomac River. Why? Adam Costanzo, a Professional Assistant Professor of History at Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi and author of George Washington’s Washington: Visions for the National Capital in the Early American Republic, joins us to consider questions of the national capital’s location and construction. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/222 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Audible 30-Day Free Trial Complementary Episodes Episode 016: Alan Taylor, The Internal Enemy Episode 061: Edward Larson, George Washington in Retirement Episode 078: Rachel Shelden, Washington Brotherhood: Politics, Social Life, and the Coming of the Civil War Episode 099: Gautham Rao, Birth of the American Tax Man Episode 113: Brian Murphy, Building the Empire State Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can food help us better understand the people and events of the past? Can we better understand a person like Benjamin Franklin and who he was by the foods he ate? Rae Katherine Eighmey, an award-winning food historian, author, and cook, joins us to explore the culinary tastes and habits of Benjamin Franklin and colonial British Americans with details from her book Stirring the Pot with Benjamin Franklin: A Founding Father’s Culinary Adventures. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/221 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Books (Use promo code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent) Denver Meet Up Saturday, January 19, 3:30pm at Prost Brewing Complementary Episodes Episode 019: Kenneth Turino, The Colonial Boston Marketplace Episode 022: Vivian Bruce Conger, Deborah Read Franklin & Sally Franklin Bache Episode 044: Adam Shprintzen, The Vegetarian Crusade Episode 135: Julie Holcomb, Moral Commerce: The Tranatlantic Boycott of the Slave Labor Economy Episode 169: Thomas S. Kidd, The Religious Life of Benjamin Franklin Episode 207: Nick Bunker, Young Benjamin Franklin Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Did you know that one of the earliest practices of slavery by English colonists originated in New England? In fact, Massachusetts issued the very first slave code in English America in 1641. Why did New Englanders turn to slavery and become the first in English America to codify its practice? Margaret Ellen Newell, a professor of history at The Ohio State University and the author of Brethren By Nature: New England Indians, Colonists, and the Origins of American Slavery, joins us to investigate these questions and issues. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/220 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Books (Use promo code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent) Denver Meet Up Saturday, January 19, 3:30pm at Prost Brewing Complementary Episodes Episode 064: Brett Rushforth, Native American Slavery in New France Episode 083: Jared Hardesty, Unfreedom: Slavery in Colonial Boston Episode 139: Andrés Reséndez, The Other Slavery Episode 170: Wendy Warren, New England Bound Episode 191: Lisa Brooks, A New History of King Philip’s War Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Inns and taverns played prominent roles in early American life. They served the needs of travelers who needed food to eat and places to sleep.They offered local communities a form of poor relief. And they functioned as public spaces where men could gather to discuss news, organize movements, and to drink and play cards. Adrian Covert, author of Taverns of the American Revolution, helps us explore taverns and the many roles they played in early American life. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/219 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Books (Use promo code 01DAH40 to save 40 percent) Denver Meet Up Saturday, January 19, 3:30pm at Prost Brewing Complementary Episodes Bonus: Longfellow’s Wayside Inn Episode 112: The Tea Crisis of 1773 Episode 160: The Politics of Tea Episode 161: Smuggling and the American Revolution Episode 187: Kenneth Cohen, Sport in Early America Episode 200: Everyday Life in Early America Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever wondered where the Christmas traditions of stockings, presents, and cookies come from? What about jolly, old Saint Nicholas? Who was he and why do we often call him Santa Claus? Peter G. Rose, culinary historian of Dutch foodways in North America and author of Delicious December: How the Dutch Brought Us Santa, Presents, and Treats joins us to discuss the origins of Santa Claus and edible goodies such as cookies in the United States. This episode originally posted as Episode 009. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/218 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Chicago 2019 Meetup Complementary Episodes Episode 035: Michael Lord, Historic Hudson Valley & Washington Irving Episode 121: Wim Klooster, The Dutch Moment in the 17th-Century Atlantic World Episode 161: Smuggling and the American Revolution Episode 185: Joyce Goodfriend, Who Should Rule at Home? Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do you uncover the life of an enslaved person who left no paper trail? What can the everyday life of an enslaved person tell us about slavery, how it was practiced, and how some enslaved people made the transition from slavery to freedom? We explore the life of Charity Folks, an enslaved woman from Maryland who gained her freedom in the late-18th century. Our guide through Charity’s life is Jessica Millward, an Associate Professor of History at the University of California, Irvine and author of Finding Charity’s Folk: Enslaved and Free Black Women in Maryland. This episode originally posted as Episode 089. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/217 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Chicago 2019 Meetup Complementary Episodes Episode 070: Jennifer Morgan, How Historians Research Episode 083: Jared Hardesty, Unfreedom: Slavery in Colonial Boston Episode 084: Zara Anishanslin, How Historians Read Historical Sources Episode 176: Daina Ramey Berry, Price For Their Pound of Flesh Episode 212: Erica Dunbar, Research Biography Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Abraham Lincoln have in common? They all grew-up in blended or stepfamilies. Lisa Wilson, the Charles J. MacCurdy Professor of American History at Connecticut College and author of A History of Stepfamilies in Early America, takes us through the creation and interactions of blended and stepfamilies in early America. This episode originally posted as Episode 027. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/216 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Chicago 2019 Meetup Complementary Episodes Episode 150: Woody Holton, Abigail Adams Episode 175: Daniel Epstein, House Divided: The Revolution in Ben Franklin’s House Episode 183: Douglas Bradburn, Mount Vernon Episode 207: Nick Bunker, Young Benjamin Franklin Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We tend to view gay marriage as a cultural and legal development of the 21st century. But did you know that some early Americans lived openly as same-sex married couples? Rachel Hope Cleves, a Professor of History at the University of Victoria in British Columbia and author of Charity and Sylvia: A Same-Sex Marriage in Early America, reveals the story of Charity Bryant and Sylvia Drake, women who lived as a married couple in Weybridge, Vermont between 1807 and 1851. This episode originally posted as Episode 013. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/215 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Chicago 2019 Meetup Complementary Episodes Episode 004: Thomas Foster, Sex and the Founding Fathers Episode 027: Lisa Wilson, A History of Stepfamilies in Early America Episode 032: Michelle Marchetti Coughlin, One Colonial Woman’s World Episode 120: Marcia Zug, A History of Mail Order Brides in Early America Episode 175: Daniel Epstein, House Divided: The Revolution in Ben Franklin’s House Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Was the early United States a “Christian nation?” Did most of its citizenry accept God and the Bible as the moral authority that bound them together as one nation? Scholars have taken a binary stance on these questions. Some argue that early America was a thoroughly religious place and that even those who didn’t attend church were on the same basic page as those who did. While others argue early America boasted an increasingly secularized society. Christopher Grasso, a professor of history at William & Mary and the author of Skepticism and American Faith: From the Revolution to the Civil War, challenges and complicates these two ideas by offering a third explanation: the religious landscape of early America was a continuum where many people experienced both faith and doubt over the course of their lives. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/214 Seattle Meet Up Details Alaskan Sourdough Bakery and Restaurant 3pm Copperworks Distilling Company Distillery Tour 5pm Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Babbel (Use Promo Code BFWorld to save 50% off your first 3 months) Complementary Episodes Episode 117: Annette Gordon-Reed, The Life and Ideas of Thomas Jefferson Episode 127: Caroline Winterer, American Enlightenments Episode 134: Spencer McBride, Pulpit and Nation Episode 169: Thomas Kidd, The Religious Life of Benjamin Franklin Episode 182: Douglas Winiarski, Darkness Falls on the Land of Light, the Great Awakening in New England Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1621, the Pilgrims of Plimoth Colony and their Wampanoag neighbors came together to celebrate their first harvest. Today we remember this event as the first Thanksgiving. But what do we really know about this holiday and the people who celebrated it? So much of what we know about the Pilgrims and the first Thanksgiving comes to us through myth and legend, which is why Rebecca Fraser, author of The Mayflower: The Families, The Voyage, and the Founding of America, joins us to help suss out fact from fiction. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/213 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Babbel (Use promo code BFWorld to save 50% on first 3 months) Seattle Meet Up Details Alaskan Sourdough Bakery and Restaurant 3pm Copperworks Distilling Company Distillery Tour 5pm Complementary Episodes Episode 095: Rose Doherty, A Tale of Two Bostons Episode 104: Andrew Lipman, Saltwater Frontier: Native Americans and Colonists on the Northeastern Coast Episode 121: Wim Klooster, The Dutch Moment in the 17th-Century Atlantic World Episode 182: Douglas Winiarski, When Darkness Falls On The Land of Light Episode 191: Lisa Brooks, A New History of King Philip’s War Episode 209: Considering Biography Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do historians and biographers reconstruct the lives of people from the past? Good biographies rely on telling the lives of people using practiced historical methods of thorough archival research and the sound interrogation of historical sources. But what does this practice of historical methods look like? In this final episode of the Omohundro Institute’s Doing History series about biography, Erica Dunbar, the Charles and Mary Beard Professor of History at Rutgers University and author of Never Caught: The Washingtons’ Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave Ona Judge, takes us into the archives to show us how she recovered the life of Ona Judge. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/212 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute John Marshall Foundation Babbel (Use Code BFWorld to save 50% off first 3 months) OI Reader App Nastassia Parker-Gross Complementary Episodes Episode 137: Erica Dunbar, The Washingtons’ Runaway Slave, Ona Judge Episode 173: Marisa Fuentes, Colonial Port Cities and Slavery Episode 183: Douglas Bradburn, George Washington’s Mount Vernon Episode 209: Considering Biography Episode 210: Considering John Marshall, Part 1 Episode 211: Considering John Marshall, Part 2 Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As part of the Omohundro Institute's Doing History series on biography, Episode 212 offers us a new conversation with Erica Dunbar, the author of Never Caught: The Washington’s Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave Ona Judge. The new episode will explore how historians and biographers reconstruct the lives of people from the past using the story of Ona Judge. In preparation for this new episode, here is our original conversation with Erica Dunbar about Ona Judge. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/137 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Doing History Series Complementary Episodes Episode 209: Considering Biography Episode 210: Considering John Marshall, Part 1 Episode 211: Considering John Marshall, Part 2 Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can a biography help us explore big historical questions? Can knowing about the life of John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, help us better understand the Supreme Court and how it came to occupy the powerful place it has in the United State government? The Doing History: Biography series continues and explores these questions with Richard Brookhiser, author of John Marshall: The Man Who Made The Supreme Court. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/211 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute John Marshall Foundation Richard Brookhiser’s Virginia Museum of History & Culture Talk OI Reader App for Bonus Content Complementary Episodes Episode 055: Robb Haberman, John Jay: Forgotten Founder Episode 068: Richard Brookhiser, Founders’ Son: A Life of Abraham Lincoln Episode 180: Kate Elizabeth Brown, Alexander Hamilton and the Making of American Law Episode 203: Joanne Freeman, Alexander Hamilton Episode 204: James Lewis Jr., The Burr Conspiracy Episode 209: Considering Biography Episode 210: Considering John Marshall, Part 1 Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For 34 years, John Marshall presided as the Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. During his service, Marshal transformed the nation’s top court and its judicial branch into the powerful body and co-equal branch of government we know it as today. The Doing History: Biography series continues as Joel Richard Paul, a professor of law at the University of California, Hastings Law School and author of Without Precedent: Chief Justice John Marshall and His Times, joins us to explore the life of John Marshall and how he wrote his biography. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/210 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute John Marshall Foundation John Marshall Papers (Use 01BFW to save 40 percent) OI Reader App for Bonus Content Complementary Episodes Episode 107: Mary Sarah Bilder, Madison’s Hand: Revising the Constitutional Convention Episode 117: Annette Gordon-Reed: The Life and Ideas of Thomas Jefferson Episode 143: Michael Klarman, The Making of the United States Constitution Episode 179: After the Revolution: Governance During the Critical Period Episode 193: Partisans: The Friendship & Rivalry of Adams & Jefferson Episode 209: Considering Biography Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin’s World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Biography. Since the earliest days of the United States, and even before the thirteen colonies came together to forge a nation, Americans have been interested in biography. But why? What is it about the lives of others that makes the past so interesting and fun to explore? This episode marks the start of the Omohundro Institute’s 4-episode Doing History series about biography. This series will take us behind-the-scenes of biography and how historians and biographers reconstruct the lives of people from the past. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/209 About the Series The Doing History: Biography series explores the genre of biography, how it relates to and is different from the genre of history, and how historians and biographers can best uncover and understand the lives of people from the past. The Doing History series explores early American history and how historians work. It is part of Ben Franklin’s World, which is produced by the Omohundro Institute. Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute John Marshall Foundation OI Reader App for Bonus Content Complementary Episodes Episode 055: Rob Haberman, John Jay: Forgotten Founder Episode 074: Mary Wigge, Martha Washington Episode 117: Annette Gordon-Reed, The Life and Times of Thomas Jefferson Episode 150: Woody Holton, Abigail Adams: Revolutionary Speculator Episode 183: Douglas Bradburn, George Washington’s Mount Vernon Episode 193: Partisans: The Friendship & Rivalry of Adams & Jefferson Episode 205: Jeanne Abrams, First Ladies of the Republic Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Ben Franklin's World Twitter: @BFWorldPodcast Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2018 marks the 241st anniversary of the American victory at the Battle of Saratoga and the 240th anniversary of the Franco-American Alliance. But was the victory that prompted the French to join the American war effort, truly the "turning point" of the War for Independence? National Book Award-winner Nathaniel Philbrick joins us to explore the two events he sees as better turning points in the American War for Independence: Benedict Arnold’s treason and the French Navy’s participation in the war. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/208 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Babbel (Free Trial) Follow Us onTwitter: @BFWorldPodcast Complementary Episodes Episode 026: Robert Middlekauff, George Washington’s Revolution Episode 037: Kathleen DuVal, Independence Lost Episode 071: Bruce Venter, Saratoga and Hubbardton, 1777 Episode 081: Don Glickstein, After Yorktown: The Final Struggle for American Independence Episode 122: Andrew O’Shaughnessy, The Men Who Lost America Episode 161: Smuggling and the American Revolution Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What in the first 40 years of his life made Benjamin Franklin the genius he became? Benjamin Franklin serves as a great window on to the early American past because as a man of “variety” he pursued many interests: literature, poetry, science, business, philosophy, philanthropy, and politics. But one aspect of Franklin’s life has gone largely unstudied: his childhood and early life. Nick Bunker, author of Young Benjamin Franklin: The Birth of Ingenuity, joins us to explore Benjamin Franklin’s early life and how family, childhood, and youthful experiences shaped him as a scientist and diplomat. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/207 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Babbel.com (Free Trial) Follow Us onTwitter: @BFWorldPodcast Complementary Episodes Episode 086: George Goodwin, Benjamin Franklin in London Episode 112: Mary Beth North, The Tea Crisis of 1773 Episode 160: The Politics of Tea Episode 169: Thomas Kidd, The Religious Life of Benjamin Franklin Episode 175: Daniel Mark Epstein, The Revolution in Ben Franklin’s House Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Between 1500 and the 1860s, Europeans and Americans forcibly removed approximately 12 million African people from the African continent, transported them to the Americas, and enslaved them. Why did Europeans and Americans enslave Africans? How did they justify their actions? Katherine Gerbner, an Assistant Professor of History at the University of Minnesota and author of Christian Slavery: Conversion and Race in the Protestant Atlantic World, leads us on an exploration of ways Christianity influenced early ideas about slavery and its practice. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/206 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute The OI Reader App (Android | iOS) Babble (Free Trial) Complementary Episodes Episode 047: Emily Conroy-Krutz, Christian Imperialism Episode 064: Brett Rusthforth, Native American slavery in New France Episode 135: Julie Holcomb, Moral Commerce Episode 139: Andrés Reséndez, Indian Enslavement in the Americas Episode 170: Wendy Warren, Slavery in Early New England Episode 173: Marisa Fuentes, Colonial Port Cities and Slavery Episode 178: Karoline Cook, Muslims & Moriscos in Colonial Spanish America Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

La Presidente? The Presidentess? The First Lady of the Land? The Second Article of the United States Constitution defines the Executive Branch of the government, the powers it has, and the role of the chief executive, the President of the United States. But what about the position of the President’s spouse? Jeanne Abrams, a Professor at the University Libraries and the Center for Judaic Studies at the University of Denver, joins us to explore the lives and work of the first First Ladies of the American Republic with details from her book, First Ladies of the Republic: Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, and Dolley Madison and the Creation of an Iconic American Role. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/205 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute OI Special Events Complementary Episodes Episode 005: Jeanne Abrams, Revolutionary Medicine Episode 074: Mary Wigge, Martha Washington Episode 137: Erica Dunbar, The Washingtons’ Runaway Slave, Ona Judge Episode 150: Woody Holton, Abigail Adams: Revolutionary Spectator Episode 193: Partisans: The Friendship & Rivalry of Adams & Jefferson Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aaron Burr: Revolutionary War hero, talented lawyer, Vice President, and Intriguer of treason? Between 1805 and 1807, Aaron Burr supposedly intended to commit treason by dividing the American union. How did Americans learn about and respond to this treasonous intrigue? James Lewis Jr., a Professor of History at Kalamazoo College and author of The Burr Conspiracy: Uncovering the Story of an Early American Crisis, guides us through what we know and don’t know about about Aaron Burr’s supposed plot to divide the American union. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/204 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Cameron Strang, Frontiers of Science: Imperialism and Natural Knowledge in the Gulf South Borderlands, 1500-1750 (Use promo code 01BFW to save 50 percent) Complementary Episodes Episode 091; Gregory Dowd, Rumors, Legends, & Homes in Early America Episode 167: Eberhard Faber, The Early History of New Orleans Episode 177: Martin Bruckner, The Social Life of Maps in America Episode 200: Everyday Life in Early America Episode 202: Early History of the United States Congress Episode 203: Joanne Freeman, Alexander Hamilton Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hamilton the Musical hit Broadway in August 2015 and since that time people all around the world have been learning about a man named Alexander Hamilton. Or, at least they’ve been learning about the musical’s character Alexander Hamilton. But who was Alexander Hamilton as a real person? Joanne Freeman, a Professor of History and American Studies at Yale University, and one of the foremost experts on the life of Alexander Hamilton, joins us to explore this large question so we can discover more about the man who helped to create the United States. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/203 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute The History List (Use promo code BEN to save $5) Complementary Episodes Bonus: The Marquis de Lafayette and the Hermione Episode 094: Cassandra Good, Founding Friendships Episode 153: Committees and Congresses: Governments of the Revolution Episode 179: George Van Cleve, Governance During the Critical Period Episode 180: Kate Elizabeth Brown, Alexander Hamilton and the Making of American Law Episode 202: Early History of the United States Congress Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On September 17, 1787, a majority of the delegates to the Constitutional Convention approved the new form of government they had spent months drafting and submitted it to the 13 states for their ratification and approval. On June 21, 1788, New Hampshire became the 9th state to ratify the Constitution, which prompted the transition to the government of the United States Constitution. Matt Wasniewski, the Historian of the United States House of Representatives and Terrance Rucker, a Historical Publications Specialist in the Office of the Historian at the United States House of Representatives, lead us on an exploration of why and how the United States Constitution established a bicameral Congress and how and why the House of Representatives took the shape and form that it did during its early meetings. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/202 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute The Great Courses Plus (Free Month Unlimited Trial) Complementary Episodes Episode 040: Kata Bartoloni-Tuazon, For Fear of an Elective King Episode 078: Rachel Shelden, Washington Brotherhood: Politics, Social Life, and the Coming of the Civil War Episode 112: Mary Beth Norton, The Tea Crisis of 1773 Episode 153: Committees and Congresses: Governments of the American Revolution Episode 179: George Van Cleve, Governance During the Critical Period Episode 180: Kate Elizabeth Brown, Alexander Hamilton and the Making of American Law Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What kind of character should Americans have? Is it possible to create a shared sense of national character and identity that all Americans can subscribe to? Americans grappled with many questions about what it meant to be an American and a citizen of the new republic after the American Revolution. They grappled with these questions because the people who made up the new United States hailed from many different cultural and ethnic backgrounds. So they wondered: How do you unite the disparate peoples of the United States into one national people? Catherine Kelly, author of Republic of Taste: Art, Politics, and Everyday Life in Early America, joins us to explore the world of art, politics, and taste in the early American republic and how that world contributed to the formation of American character and virtue. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/201 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Babbel (Use promo code BFWorld to save 50 percent off your first 3 months) OI Books Flash Sale (Use promo code 01BFW before September 4, 2018 to save 50 percent) Complementary Episodes Episode 024: Kimberly Alexander, 18th-Century Fashion & Material Culture Episode 076: Nathan Perl-Rosenthal, Citizen Sailors: Becoming American in the Age of Revolution Episode 084: Zara Anishanslin, How Historians Read Historical Sources Episode 127: Caroline Winterer, American Enlightenments Episode 136: Jennifer Van Horn, Material Culture and the Making of America Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What would you like to know about Early American History? It turns out, you wanted to know about the establishment of schools, how the colonial postal service worked, and about aspects of health and hygiene in early America. In this listener-inspired Q&A episode, we speak with Johann Neem, Joseph Adelman, and Ann Little to explore these aspects of early American history and to get answers to your questions about them. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/200 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Babbel (Use promo code BFWorld to save 50 percent off your first 3 months) The Great Courses Plus (Free Trial) Episode Bibliography Complementary Episodes Episode 008: Greg O’Malley, Final Passages Episode 083: Jared Hardesty, Unfreedom: Slavery in Colonial Boston Episode 108: Ann Little, The Many Captivities of Esther Wheelwright Episode 156: Information and Communication Episode 161: Smuggling and the American Revolution Episode 190: Jennifer Goloboy, Origins of the American Middle Class Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When we explore the history of early America, we often look at people who lived in North America. But what about the people who lived and worked in European metropoles? What about Native Americans? We explore early American history through a slightly different lens, a lens that allows us to see interactions that occurred between Native American peoples and English men and women who lived in London. Our guide for this exploration is Coll Thrush, an Associate Professor of History at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver and author of Indigenous London: Native Travelers at the Heart of the Empire. This episode originally posted as Episode 132. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/199 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute BFWorld Newsletter Signup Complementary Episodes Episode 079: Jim Horn, What is a Historic Source? (Jamestown and Pocahontas) Episode 104: Andrew Lipman, The Saltwater Frontier Episode 170: Wendy Warren, New England Bound: Slavery in Early New England Episode 184: David J. Silverman, Thundersticks: Firearms and the Violent Transformation of Native America Episode 191: Lisa Brooks, A New History of King Philip’s War Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When we think of Native Americans, many of us think of inland dwellers. People adept at navigating forests and rivers and the skilled hunters and horsemen who lived and hunted on the American Plains. But did you know that Native Americans were seafaring mariners too? Andrew Lipman, an Assistant Professor of History at Barnard College, Columbia University and author of The Saltwater Frontier: Indians and the Contest for the American Coast, leads us on an exploration of the northeastern coastline and of the Native American and European peoples who lived there during the seventeenth century. This episode originally posted as Episode 104. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/198 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute BFWorld Newsletter Signup Complementary Episodes Episode 079: James Horn, What is a Historical Source? (Colonial Jamestown) Episode 121: Wim Klooster, The Dutch Moment in the 17th-Centur Atlantic World EpIsode 132: Coll Thrush, Indigenous London: Native Travelers in the Heart of the Empire Episode 185: Joyce Goodfriend, Early New York City and Its Culture Episode 191: Lisa Brooks, A New History of King Philip’s War Episode 196: Alejandra Dubcovsky, Information Exchange in the Early Southeast Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When we think about early American slavery, our minds evoke images of plantations where enslaved men and women were forced to labor in agricultural fields and inside the homes of wealthy Americans. These images depict the practice of chattel slavery; a practice where early Americans treated slaves as property that they could buy, sell, trade, and use as they would real estate and draught animals. But, did you know that some early Americans practiced a different type of slavery? We investigate the practice of Native American or indigenous slavery, a little-known aspect of early American history, with Brett Rushforth, author of Bonds of Alliance: Indigenous and Atlantic Slaveries in New France. This episode originally published as Episode 064. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/197 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute BFWorld Newsletter Signup Bonds of Alliance: Indigenous and Atlantic Slaveries in New France (Listener-Only 40-Percent Discount Code 01BFW) Complementary Episodes Episode 021: Eugene Tesdahl, Smuggling in Colonial America & Living History Episode 108: Ann Little, The Many Captivities of Esther Wheelright Episode 139: Andrés Reséndez, The Other Slavery: Indian Enslavement in the Americas Episode 170: Wendy Warren, New England Bound: Slavery in Early New England Episode 184: David J. Silverman, Thundersticks: Firearms and the Violent Transformation of Native America Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We live in an age of information. The internet provides us with 24/7 access to all types of information—news, how-to articles, sports scores, entertainment news, and congressional votes. But what do we do with all of this knowledge? How do we sift through and interpret it all? We are not the first people to ponder these questions. Today, Alejandra Dubcovsky, an Associate Professor at University of California Riverside and author of Informed Power: Communication in the Early South, takes us through the early American south and how the Native Americans, Europeans, and enslaved Africans who lived there acquired, used, and traded information. This episode originally published as Episode 082. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/196 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute BFWorld Newsletter Sign up Complementary Episodes Episode 139: Andrés Reséndez, The Other Slavery: Indian Enslavement in the Americas Episode 168: Andrea Smalley, Wild By Nature: Colonists and Animals in North America Episode 171: Jessica Stern, Native Americans, British Colonists, and Trade in North America Episode 178: Karoline Cook, Muslims & Moriscos in Colonial Spanish America Episode 184: David J. Silverman, Thundersticks: Firearms and the Violent Transformation of Native America Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1705 a group of colonists in Simsbury, Connecticut founded a copper mine, which the Connecticut General Assembly purchased and turned into a prison in 1773. How did an old copper mine function as a prison? Morgan Bengel, a Museum Assistant at the Old New-Gate Prison and Copper Mine, a Connecticut State Historic Site, helps us investigate both the history of early American mining and the history of early American prisons by taking us on a tour of the Old New-Gate Prison and Copper Mine in East Granby, Connecticut. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/195 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Susan Sleeper-Smith, Indigenous Prosperity and American Conquest (Listener-Only 40-Percent Discount Code 01BFW) Complementary Episodes Episode 079: James Horn, What is a Historical Source? (Colonial Jamestown) Episode 080: Jen Manion, Liberty’s Prisoners: Prisons and Prison Life in Early America Episode 123: Revolutionary Allegiances Episode 170: Wendy Warren: New England Bound: Slavery in Early New England Episode 181: Virginia DeJohn Anderson: The Martyr and the Traitor: Nathan Hale and Moses Dunbar Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As part of its mission, the National Park Service seeks to protect and preserve places saved by the American people so that all may experience the heritage of the United States. These places include those with historical significance. Supervisory Park Ranger Garrett Cloer joins us to explore the Longfellow House-Washington’s Headquarters National Historic Site so we can discover more about the Siege of Boston (1775-76) and the birth of the Continental Army and the life and work of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/194 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Daniel Livesay, Children of Uncertain Fortune Complementary Episodes Episode 026: Robert Middlekauff, George Washington’s Revolution Episode 112: Mary Beth Norton, The Tea Crisis of 1773 Episode 129: John Bell, The Road to Concord Episode 130: Paul Revere’s Ride Through History Episode 157: The Revolution’s African American Soldiers Episode 158: The Revolutionaries’ Army Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1959, the Omohundro Institute and University of North Carolina Press published Lester J. Cappon’s The Adams-Jefferson Letters: The Complete Correspondence between Thomas Jefferson and John and Abigail Adams. It was the first time that all 380 letters between Jefferson and the Adamses appeared in a single volume. Why did Lester Cappon and the Omohundro Institute undertake this great project? And how did they put together this important documentary edition? Karin Wulf, Director of the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture, takes us behind-the-scenes of The Adams-Jefferson Letters and its publication. Links Omohundro Institute Lester J. Cappon ed., The Adams-Jefferson Letters Karin Wulf Episode 193: Partisans: The Friendship and Rivalry of Adams and Jefferson Klepp and Wulf ed, The Diary of Hannah Callander Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, A Midwife’s Tale Charles F. Hobson, Papers of John Marshall Louis B. Wright ed., Robert Beverley, The History and Present State of Virginia National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHCRP) Ronald Hoffman and Sally Mason ed., The Carroll Papers (2001) Winthrop Jordan, White Over Black Gordon Wood, The Creation of the American Republic Kathleen Brown, Good Wives, Nasty Wenches, and Anxious Patriarchs Susan Sleeper-Smith, Indigenous Prosperity and American Conquest Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. Two drafters and signers of the Declaration of Independence, two diplomats who served the United States abroad in Europe, and two men who went on to serve as vice president and president of the United States. Both men left indelible marks on American society. Adams and Jefferson are two founders who captivate the attention of and greatly interest Americans today, so in honor of the 242nd anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and the 192nd anniversary of their deaths, we will explore their lives and relationship. Barbara Oberg and Sara Georgini, two historians and documentary editors, join us from the Papers of Thomas Jefferson and the Papers of John Adams Documentary Editing Projects so we can explore the lives and relationships of John and Abigail Adams and Thomas Jefferson. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/193 Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Discover the relationship between “Abigail and Tom” The Great Courses Plus (Free Trial) Complementary Episodes Episode 007: Sara Georgini, John Adams and The Adams Papers Editorial Project Episode 018: Danielle Allen, Our Declaration Episode 117: Annette Gordon-Reed, The Life and Ideas of Thomas Jefferson Episode 141: A Declaration in Draft Episode 145: Rosemarie Zaggari, Mercy Otis Warren and the American Revolution Episode 150: Woody Holton, Abigail Adams: Revolutionary Speculator Episode 188: Terri Halperin, The Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Jersey Devil is a monster legend that originated in New Jersey’s early American past. How and why did this legend emerge? And, what can it tell us about New Jersey’s past? Brian Regal, an Associate Professor of History at Kean University and the co-author of The Secret History of the Jersey Devil: How Quakers, Hucksters, and Benjamin Franklin Created A Monster, takes us into New Jersey’s past by taking us through the origins of the New Jersey Devil story. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/192 Meet Ups Boston History Camp, July 7 Boston Meet Up: July 8, 10am Meet at the corner of Park Street and Tremont Street on Boston Common Cleveland Meet up at Shooters on the Water July 21, 4pm Sponsor Links Omohundro Institute Molly Wash, American Baroque Sign up for the Ben Franklin’s World Email List Complementary Episodes Episode 053: Emerson W. Baker: A Storm of Witchcraft Episode 135: Julie Holcomb, Moral Commerce: The Transatlantic Boycott of the Slave Labor Economy Episode 138: Patrick Spero, Frontier Politics in Early America Episode 156: The Power of the Press in the American Revolution Episode 169: Thomas Kidd, The Religious Life of Benjamin Franklin Episode 185: Joyce Goodfriend, Early New York City and its Culture Helpful Show Links Ben Franklin's World Facebook Page Join the Ben Franklin's World Community Sign-up for the Franklin Gazette Newsletter Ben Franklin's World iOS App Ben Franklin's World Android App *Books purchased through this link will help support the production of Ben Franklin's World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices